Home

Not every child dreams of going to college. Not because they don’t want to go, but because it seems so far out of reach — they can’t even imagine it.

The Des Moines “I Have a Dream” Foundation works with local disadvantaged students to get them college-ready, both academically and by inspiring them to dream and set goals for their futures.

We take a proactive approach to dropout prevention to put at-risk students on the path to college and career success. We incorporate academic assistance, social support, mentoring and parent programming into our comprehensive model. On average, an at-risk child has about a 60% chance of graduating from high school. Our Dreamer students? Over 95%.

We believe education is a community effort, and work with strong partners such as Des Moines Public Schools, Drake University, corporate donors, United Way of Central Iowa and individual educators, parents, businesspeople and volunteers to put our kids on track
for success.

Fostering a culture of college and career is in the best interest of everyone. More graduates who are prepared to lead strengthen our local economy and enrich the community we share.

Our Mission

The Des Moines “I Have a Dream”® Foundation motivates and empowers children from low-income communities to reach their education and career goals by providing a long-term program of mentoring, tutoring and enrichment as well as tuition assistance for higher education.